Theme to Neighbours
Encyclopedia
The theme to Neighbours is the theme tune to the popular Australian soap opera Neighbours
. Composed by Tony Hatch
with the lyrics written by his then wife, Jackie Trent
, it has been voted the world's most recognised television theme song. The song was originally recorded by Barry Crocker
, who also recorded the updated version, subsequent versions have been recorded by a variety of artists.
Depending on the broadcaster, each theme has received edits for timing purposes, the most edited versions being broadcast by the BBC
in the UK. To begin with this was due to the fact the BBC could not broadcast the advertising featured at the end of Neighbours credit roles, it was also due to a 30 second timing restriction imposed on all programming. Other broadcasters have usually shown the credits uncut leaving the theme song at its original length.
- commissioned episodes received a few edits following the # day #, # away #, # blend # and # friends # climaxes when it was shown on the BBC, but was left untouched in the rest of the world. When Network Ten
episodes aired on the BBC the full uncut version was used.
Version one was released in 1988 as a single, charting at #84 and remaining on the chart for 5 weeks This version contained the full closing theme and the last verse being repeated twice. The opening also featured a guitar section, as well as additional piano chords (which was also heard in 1990 often during the pre-titles episode recap)
For episode 1001, another version with different lyrics by Mark Little
and Cathy Farr was produced and released as a single. It was sung by actors Lisa Armytage, Anne Charleston
, Fiona Corke
, Alan Dale
, Annie Jones
, Paul Keane
, Craig McLachlan
and Ian Smith
. The B-Side included merged lyrics of the original and the Little/Farr rewrite.
and an Electric Piano
, used in the first episode shown on Channel 7, and in several commercials for the show during the 1980s. This was used for a few weeks before being replaced by a 7-second vocal version of the same short piece. This lasted until the debut of version three of the theme in May 1992.
and Paul Norton. Pettifer changed it to a more rock & roll key to suit the vocalists and introduced over-driven electric guitar, giving it a rockier feel. The opening theme reverted to 23 seconds and replaced # Everybody needs good neighbours # with # Should be there for one another #. Once again there was a shortened closing theme for UK transmission (The full version was only heard during documentary series Neighbours Revealed). One of the major changes made to the theme heard in Australia during this era was the removal of the repeated backing vocal # That's when good... # from mid-2000 onwards, although this remained on episodes broadcast outside of Australia and the UK.
. The opening and closing songs followed the same lyrical and verse arrangement introduced in 1992. In the show's 20th anniversary episode broadcast, The song was reduced to an instrumental in the end credits so past characters who made cameos would be audible when they made parting messages.
In 2006 a very slightly remixed version of the same closing theme debuted. The intention was for all territories to begin transmitting the same 45 second version at the end of their episodes, however UK broadcasts retained the previous 35 second arrangement for a few weeks until they received a newer batch of episodes with the revised theme attached. Despite a brief period of uniformity, by mid-2006 the BBC had requested further edits to be made to their version of the song to bring it back down to 35 seconds. Australia then reverted to an almost full length track, albeit with minor edits at various sections to keep running time to 55 seconds, whilst other markets, including New Zealand and the Republic of Ireland
, continued to receive the original 45 second arrangement launched at the start of 2006. This meant that for over a year between 2006–2007 there were three different edits of the closing theme tune being broadcast around the world as well as three different closing credits designs to accompany them.
Despite the many edits made to the 2002–2007 closing song, the opening theme remained unchanged for the duration at 23 seconds. This version is also featured on the soundtrack album Neighbours:The Music
This version has accompanied a relevant photo montage during the closing credits, starting in 1992 with Todd Landers
, in the episode after his death, and was used again for the deaths of Jim Robinson
and Helen Daniels
. Madge Bishop
also received the sad theme tune over the regular 2001 season closing sequence. A montage of clips featuring Madge during her final year (since the show had started filming in 16:9 widescreen) were shown in the recap of the next episode.
, and her Chancellor of the Exchequer, (and Downing Street "neighbour") Nigel Lawson
. This speech was considered one of the most effective and memorable of modern times, and Lawson was soon replaced in Number 11 by John Major
. Within 18 months of the speech, Thatcher herself was replaced in Number 10, also by John Major
.
In August 2005, Muslim students sang the theme tune to the then Prime Minister of Australia
, John Howard
, amid a row over the banning of hijabs
at a school.
The 80's version of the theme song was also featured in the Lily Allen
song "Fuck You
", where the song contained the piano tune from the theme music at the beginning of Allen's song.
Neighbours
Neighbours is an Australian television soap opera first broadcast on the Seven Network on 18 March 1985. It was created by TV executive Reg Watson, who proposed the idea of making a show that focused on realistic stories and portrayed adults and teenagers who talk openly and solve their problems...
. Composed by Tony Hatch
Tony Hatch
Anthony Peter "Tony" Hatch is an English composer, songwriter, pianist, music arranger and producer.-Early life and early career:...
with the lyrics written by his then wife, Jackie Trent
Jackie Trent
Jackie Trent is an English singer, songwriter, and actress.-Career:Trent's first stage appearance was as a ten-year-old ingenue in the pantomime Babes In The Wood, but her primary interest was a career in pop music...
, it has been voted the world's most recognised television theme song. The song was originally recorded by Barry Crocker
Barry Crocker
Barry Hugh Crocker OAM is a popular Australian singer, with a crooning vocal style.-Biography:...
, who also recorded the updated version, subsequent versions have been recorded by a variety of artists.
Theme song
Since 1985 there have been six different renditions of the theme broadcast on television. They were sung by the following artists:| Version | Artist | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Barry Crocker Barry Crocker Barry Hugh Crocker OAM is a popular Australian singer, with a crooning vocal style.-Biography:... |
March 1985 – June 1989 |
| 2 |
June 1989 – May 1992 | |
| 3 | Greg Hind | May 1992 – December 1998 |
| 4 | Paul Norton & Wendy Stapleton Wendy Stapleton Wendy Anne-Marie Stapleton is an Australian pop/rock singer-songwriter, and musical theatre and television actress. Stapleton has performed as a backing singer, session musician and a solo artist; she fronted various Melbourne-based groups including Wendy Stapleton Band and Wendy & the Rocketts ... |
January 1999 – December 2001 |
| 5 | Janine Maunder | January 2002 – July 2007 |
| 6 | Sandra de Jong | July 2007 – present |
Depending on the broadcaster, each theme has received edits for timing purposes, the most edited versions being broadcast by the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
in the UK. To begin with this was due to the fact the BBC could not broadcast the advertising featured at the end of Neighbours credit roles, it was also due to a 30 second timing restriction imposed on all programming. Other broadcasters have usually shown the credits uncut leaving the theme song at its original length.
Version 1
The full closing theme of version one that was attached to Seven NetworkSeven Network
The Seven Network is an Australian television network owned by Seven West Media Limited. It dates back to 4 November 1956, when the first stations on the VHF7 frequency were established in Melbourne and Sydney.It is currently the second largest network in the country in terms of population reach...
- commissioned episodes received a few edits following the # day #, # away #, # blend # and # friends # climaxes when it was shown on the BBC, but was left untouched in the rest of the world. When Network Ten
Network Ten
Network Ten , is one of Australia's three major commercial television networks. Owned-and-operated stations can be found in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, while affiliates extend the network to cover most of the country...
episodes aired on the BBC the full uncut version was used.
Version one was released in 1988 as a single, charting at #84 and remaining on the chart for 5 weeks This version contained the full closing theme and the last verse being repeated twice. The opening also featured a guitar section, as well as additional piano chords (which was also heard in 1990 often during the pre-titles episode recap)
For episode 1001, another version with different lyrics by Mark Little
Mark Little (Australian actor)
Mark Little , is an Australian actor, television presenter and comedian, born in Brisbane, Queensland.-Career:Little appeared in a string of Australian films and TV series during the 1980s. He also performed his own comedy/performance in Melbourne's burgeoning comedy clubs throughout the eighties...
and Cathy Farr was produced and released as a single. It was sung by actors Lisa Armytage, Anne Charleston
Anne Charleston
Anne Charleston is an Australian actress currently based in Galway, Ireland and the UK. She is known for her roles as Madge Bishop in the Australian soap opera Neighbours and Lily Butterfield in Emmerdale.-Early career:...
, Fiona Corke
Fiona Corke
Fiona Corke is an Australian actress best known for her role as Gail Robinson on the Australian soap opera Neighbours.-Career:Corke began her career with a minor role in the film 'I Live with Me Dad'...
, Alan Dale
Alan Dale
Alan Hugh Dale is a New Zealand actor. As a child, Dale developed a love of theatre and also became a rugby player. After retiring from the sport he took on a number of professions to support his family, before deciding to become a professional actor at the age of 27. With work limited in New...
, Annie Jones
Annie Jones (actress)
Annie Jones is an Australian actress who is best known for her role as Jane Harris in the soap opera Neighbours. She has won 2 Logie Awards.-Biography:...
, Paul Keane
Paul Keane
Paul Keane is an Australian actor well known for playing Des Clarke in the soap opera Neighbours. Other TV credits include Bliss and Flight Into Hell. He was trained at the National Institute of Dramatic Art, graduating in 1983....
, Craig McLachlan
Craig McLachlan
Craig McLachlan is an Australian actor and singer. He appeared in shows such as Sons and Daughters, Neighbours, Bugs and Home and Away.-Biography:...
and Ian Smith
Ian Smith (actor)
Ian Smith is an Australian soap opera character actor and television screenwriter, best known today for his long-running role as the caring, kindly coffee shop owner Harold Bishop in the soap opera Neighbours....
. The B-Side included merged lyrics of the original and the Little/Farr rewrite.
Version 2
The opening theme of version two changed frequently. From the introduction of the updated song in June 1989, following episode 1000 until mid-way through 1990 there was a full length opening song which was essentially a sped-up version of the original with a few new chords; In mid-way through 1990 this was replaced to a 10-second instrumental piece with two primary instruments, a HarmonicaHarmonica
The harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes...
and an Electric Piano
Electric piano
An electric piano is an electric musical instrument.Electric pianos produce sounds mechanically and the sounds are turned into electrical signals by pickups. Unlike a synthesizer, the electric piano is not an electronic instrument, but electro-mechanical. The earliest electric pianos were invented...
, used in the first episode shown on Channel 7, and in several commercials for the show during the 1980s. This was used for a few weeks before being replaced by a 7-second vocal version of the same short piece. This lasted until the debut of version three of the theme in May 1992.
Version 3
Version three used a jazzy, funky 23 second opening song. This was arranged by Peter Sullivan, and had its debut in 1992 essentially as a re-record of the 1985 and 1989 Barry Crocker versions of the theme with Melbourne-based singer Greg Hind. Its closing theme differed significantly from the previous two arrangements in that it concentrated solely on repeating the second verse of the song to make up the song's length, thus discarding lyrics such as # Just a friendly wave each morning... # and # Next door is only a footstep away #. This song was heavily edited and used as a revised opening theme from part-way through the 1995 season onwards, and was adopted as the BBC's closing theme from 1995.Version 4
Version four, arranged by music director / screen composer Chris Pettifer, debuted in 1999 essentially as a re-record of the 1992 theme with two Melbourne-based singers Wendy StapletonWendy Stapleton
Wendy Anne-Marie Stapleton is an Australian pop/rock singer-songwriter, and musical theatre and television actress. Stapleton has performed as a backing singer, session musician and a solo artist; she fronted various Melbourne-based groups including Wendy Stapleton Band and Wendy & the Rocketts ...
and Paul Norton. Pettifer changed it to a more rock & roll key to suit the vocalists and introduced over-driven electric guitar, giving it a rockier feel. The opening theme reverted to 23 seconds and replaced # Everybody needs good neighbours # with # Should be there for one another #. Once again there was a shortened closing theme for UK transmission (The full version was only heard during documentary series Neighbours Revealed). One of the major changes made to the theme heard in Australia during this era was the removal of the repeated backing vocal # That's when good... # from mid-2000 onwards, although this remained on episodes broadcast outside of Australia and the UK.
Version 5
Version five was launched in 2002 and once again a shorter piece of closing music was edited for the UK market, with the rest of the world using the same 76 second variant. This was sung by Janine Maunder and arranged by Steve WadeSteve Wade (singer)
Steve Wade is an award-winning Australian singer, songwriter and musician. For four years he was the lead vocalist for Little River Band. Wade is a two-time winner of Australian Songwriter of the Year.-Singer:...
. The opening and closing songs followed the same lyrical and verse arrangement introduced in 1992. In the show's 20th anniversary episode broadcast, The song was reduced to an instrumental in the end credits so past characters who made cameos would be audible when they made parting messages.
In 2006 a very slightly remixed version of the same closing theme debuted. The intention was for all territories to begin transmitting the same 45 second version at the end of their episodes, however UK broadcasts retained the previous 35 second arrangement for a few weeks until they received a newer batch of episodes with the revised theme attached. Despite a brief period of uniformity, by mid-2006 the BBC had requested further edits to be made to their version of the song to bring it back down to 35 seconds. Australia then reverted to an almost full length track, albeit with minor edits at various sections to keep running time to 55 seconds, whilst other markets, including New Zealand and the Republic of Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
, continued to receive the original 45 second arrangement launched at the start of 2006. This meant that for over a year between 2006–2007 there were three different edits of the closing theme tune being broadcast around the world as well as three different closing credits designs to accompany them.
Despite the many edits made to the 2002–2007 closing song, the opening theme remained unchanged for the duration at 23 seconds. This version is also featured on the soundtrack album Neighbours:The Music
Version 6
A new version of the theme tune sung by Sandra de Jong debuted in Australia on 23 June 2007 as part of a revamp of the show. This was arranged by Neighbours Music Director, Chris Pettifer and song writer – producer Adrian Hannan. The opening song is longer than in recent years at 29 seconds and is also notable for re-introducing # Everybody needs good neighbours # to the opening song after an eight year absence. The full edition of the closing theme continues to solely use the second verse of the Neighbours song, as has been the case since 1992. The new version does not repeat the verse however, using instead a repetitive technique applied to the # That's when good neighbours become good friends # line and an additional instrumental piece to make up the theme's length which remains unchanged at 55 seconds. For the 2008 season onwards, Australian TEN episodes were followed by a shorter 18 second instrumental arrangement of the new theme tune, accompanying shortened closing credits on Monday-Thursday episodes. Friday episodes transmit with the full closing sequence. In the UK the 18 second closing credits were adopted as of episode of 5331 for all episodes broadcast, including Fridays and omnibuses, whilst New Zealand and Ireland currently follows the arrangement used by Australia.Sombre version
A sombre piano version of the theme is reserved to close episodes surrounding the death of long-standing or original characters. In the early years, it was often used for tender moments.This version has accompanied a relevant photo montage during the closing credits, starting in 1992 with Todd Landers
Todd Landers
Not to be confused with Simpsons character Todd FlandersTodd Robert Landers is a fictional character from the Australian Network Ten soap opera Neighbours, played by Kristian Schmid. He made his first on-screen appearance on 15 February 1988. Todd died on 13 July 1992, but reappeared as a ghost the...
, in the episode after his death, and was used again for the deaths of Jim Robinson
Jim Robinson (Neighbours)
James "Jim" Robinson is a fictional character from the Australian Network Ten soap opera Neighbours, played by Alan Dale. He made his first on-screen appearance on 18 March 1985, which was the shows first episode. Jim was the patriarch of the Robinson family. Dale departed the show in 1993 after...
and Helen Daniels
Helen Daniels
Helen Daniels is a fictional character from the Australian soap opera Neighbours, portrayed by Anne Haddy. Following the death of Jim Robinson in 1993, she remained the only original character left in the series until her own death in 1997, making her the second longest-serving original character...
. Madge Bishop
Madge Bishop
Margaret Mary "Madge" Bishop is a fictional character from the Australian soap opera Neighbours, played by Anne Charleston. She made her first on-screen appearance on 20 January 1986. Madge was one of the matriarchs of the Ramsay family. She departed in 1992, before making a return in 1996...
also received the sad theme tune over the regular 2001 season closing sequence. A montage of clips featuring Madge during her final year (since the show had started filming in 16:9 widescreen) were shown in the recap of the next episode.
Political and cultural impact
The lyric of the song were famously quoted by John Smith, the then United Kingdom Shadow Chancellor, in a House of Commons Debate on Government Economic Policy Smith was bringing to attention the divergence in the economic policies of, and the tensions in the relationship between the Prime Minister, Margaret ThatcherMargaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990...
, and her Chancellor of the Exchequer, (and Downing Street "neighbour") Nigel Lawson
Nigel Lawson
Nigel Lawson, Baron Lawson of Blaby, PC , is a British Conservative politician and journalist. He was a Member of Parliament representing the constituency of Blaby from 1974–92, and served as the Chancellor of the Exchequer in the government of Margaret Thatcher from June 1983 to October 1989...
. This speech was considered one of the most effective and memorable of modern times, and Lawson was soon replaced in Number 11 by John Major
John Major
Sir John Major, is a British Conservative politician, who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990–1997...
. Within 18 months of the speech, Thatcher herself was replaced in Number 10, also by John Major
John Major
Sir John Major, is a British Conservative politician, who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990–1997...
.
In August 2005, Muslim students sang the theme tune to the then Prime Minister of Australia
Prime Minister of Australia
The Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of Australia is the highest minister of the Crown, leader of the Cabinet and Head of Her Majesty's Australian Government, holding office on commission from the Governor-General of Australia. The office of Prime Minister is, in practice, the most powerful...
, John Howard
John Howard
John Winston Howard AC, SSI, was the 25th Prime Minister of Australia, from 11 March 1996 to 3 December 2007. He was the second-longest serving Australian Prime Minister after Sir Robert Menzies....
, amid a row over the banning of hijabs
Hijab
The word "hijab" or "'" refers to both the head covering traditionally worn by Muslim women and modest Muslim styles of dress in general....
at a school.
The 80's version of the theme song was also featured in the Lily Allen
Lily Allen
Lily Rose Beatrice Cooper , better known as Lily Allen, is an English recording artist and fashion designer. She is the daughter of actor and musician Keith Allen and film producer Alison Owen. In her teenage years, her musical tastes evolved from glam rock to alternative...
song "Fuck You
Fuck You (Lily Allen song)
"Fuck You" is a song by English singer Lily Allen from her second album It's Not Me, It's You...
", where the song contained the piano tune from the theme music at the beginning of Allen's song.